Making a Meal with What's on Hand

Are you tired of buying ingredients for which you use only part of the food in a recipe? Do you end up tossing the remaining portion of the package a couple of months later. Is there any way around this?

Think of a cookbook as not just 100 recipes, but 100 starters leading to 1,000's of meals advises an article in "Tastings," a publication of the Food and Culinary professionals practice group of the American Dietetic Association.

The article recommends that you feel free to move off the beaten path if a recipe requires ingredients you don't have on hand.

Here are some examples to spark your imagination:

Want to make sandwiches, but you've just eaten your last slice of bread? Use tortillas, pita bread, rolls or focaccia instead.

Feel like pasta, but you're missing the pasta sauce? Try topping your pasta with chili or a favorite soup you may have on hand. (NOTE: for some soups, you may wish to add less liquid so they make a thicker sauce.)

No ingredients for a meat marinade? Marinate the meat with your favorite vinegar and oil salad dressing.

Need a side dish for your meat and you're completely out of vegetables? Try sliced, sautéed fruit, such as apples or mangoes.

What if there's no wine to add to a sauce? Perhaps fruit preserves might work equally well.

Freezing

Perishable Food

You'll be gone several several days for the holidays, vacation, on business, to see family, etc. ... what can you do with the foods that stay behind in the refrigerator? Especially the foods that will no longer be safe or will decrease in quality by your return?